Red Hat Satellite Capsule Server mirrors content from Red Hat Satellite Server to facilitate content federation across various geographical locations. Host systems can pull content from the Capsule Server and not from the central Satellite Server. The Capsule Server also provides localized services such as Puppet Master, DHCP, DNS, or TFTP. Capsule Servers assist you in scaling your Satellite environment as the number of your managed systems increases.

Capsule Servers decrease the load on the central server, increase redundancy, and reduce bandwidth usage. For more information, see the Capsule Server Overview.

Chapter 2. Preparing your environment for installation

2.1. System Requirements

The following requirements apply to the networked base system:

64-bit architecture

The latest version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 Server

4-core 2.0 GHz CPU at a minimum

A minimum of 20 GB memory is required for the Satellite Server to function. In addition, a minimum of 4 GB of swap space is also recommended. Satellite running with less memory than the minimum value might not operate correctly.

2.2. Storage Requirements and Recommendations

Packages that are duplicated in different repositories are only stored once on the disk. Additional repositories containing duplicate packages require less additional storage. The bulk of storage resides in the /var/lib/mongodb/ and /var/lib/pulp/ directories. These end points are not manually configurable. Make sure that storage is available on the /var file system to prevent storage issues.

The /var/cache/pulp/ directory is used to temporarily store content while it is being synchronized. For content in RPM format, a maximum of 5 RPM files are stored in this directory at any time. After each file is synchronized, it is moved to the /var/lib/pulp/ directory. Up to eight RPM content synchronization tasks can be running simultaneously by default, with each using up to 1 GB of metadata. For content in ISO format, all ISO files per synchronization task are stored in /var/cache/pulp/ until the task is complete, after which they are moved to the /var/lib/pulp/ directory. For example, if you are synchronizing four ISO files, each 4 GB in size, this requires a total of 16 GB in the /var/cache/pulp/ directory. Take into account the number of ISO files you intend synchronizing because the temporary disk space required for them typically exceeds that of RPM content.

The following tables detail recommended storage requirements for specific directories. These values are based on expected use case scenarios and can vary according to individual environments. The Capsule Server table also applies to the Satellite Server as it has an integrated Capsule by default. Pay attention to your specific use case when reading the tables. For example, you can have a Capsule Server without Pulp enabled, in which case you do not need the same level of storage requirements for directories related to Pulp such as /var/lib/pulp/.

In the following two tables, the runtime size was measured with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5, 6, and 7 repositories synchronized.

Table 2.1. Storage Requirements for Satellite Server Installation

Directory

Installation Size

Runtime Size

Considerations

/var/cache/pulp/

1 MB

10 GB (Connected Installations Minimum)

See the notes in this section’s introduction.

/var/cache/pulp/

1 MB

30 GB (Disconnected Installations Minimum)

See the notes in this section’s introduction.

/var/lib/pulp/

1 MB

500 GB

Continues to grow as content is added to Satellite Server. Plan for expansion over time.

Symbolic links cannot be used.

/var/lib/mongodb/

3.5 GB

50 GB

Continues to grow as content is added to Satellite Server. Plan for expansion over time.

Symbolic links cannot be used.

NFS is not recommended with MongoDB.

/var/log/

10 MB

250 MB

None

/var/lib/pgsql/

100 MB

10 GB

A minimum of 2 GB of available storage in /var/lib/pgsql/ with the ability to grow the partition containing this directory as data storage requirements grow. It is recommended not to use NFS with PostgreSQL.

/usr

3 GB

Not Applicable

None

/opt

500 MB (Connected Installations)

Not Applicable

Software collections are installed into the /opt/rh/ and /opt/theforeman/ directories. Write and execute permissions by root are required for installation into to the /opt directory.

/opt

3 GB (Disconnected Installations)

Not Applicable

Software collections are installed into the /opt/rh/ and /opt/theforeman/ directories. Write and execute permissions by root are required for installation into to the /opt directory.

A copy of the repositories used for installation is stored in this directory.

Table 2.2. Storage Requirements for Capsule Server Installation

Directory

Installation Size

Runtime Size

Considerations

/var/cache/pulp/

1 MB

10 GB (Minimum)

See the notes in this section’s introduction.

/var/lib/pulp/

1 MB

500 GB

Continues to grow as content is added. Plan for expansion over time.

Symbolic links cannot be used.

/var/lib/mongodb/

3.5 GB

50 GB

Continues to grow as content is added. Plan for expansion over time.

Symbolic links cannot be used.

NFS is not recommended with MongoDB.

Log files are written to /var/log/messages/, /var/log/httpd/, and /var/lib/foreman-proxy/openscap/content/. You can manage the size of these files using logrotate. For more information, see Log Rotation in the System Administrator’s Guide.

Storage Recommendations

Because most Satellite as well as Capsule Server data is stored within the /var directory, it is strongly recommended to mount /var on LVM storage, enabling the system to scale.

Use high-bandwidth, low-latency storage for the /var/lib/pulp/ and /var/lib/mongodb/ directories. As Red Hat Satellite has many operations that are I/O intensive, using high latency, low-bandwidth storage will cause performance degradation. Ensure your installation has a speed in the range 60 - 80 Megabytes per second. You can use the fio tool to get this data. See the Red Hat Knowledgebase solution Impact of Disk Speed on Satellite 6 Operations for more information on using the fio tool.

It is recommended not to use NFS with MongoDB as MongoDB does not use conventional I/O to access data files and performance problems occur when both the data files and the journal files are hosted on NFS. If required to use NFS, mount the volumes with the following option in the /etc/fstab file: bg, nolock, and noatime.

Do not use the GFS2 file system as the input-output latency has been found to be too high.

For improved performance, use solid state drives (SSD) rather than hard disk drives (HDD).

The XFS file system is recommended for Red Hat Satellite 6 because it does not have the inode limitations that ext4 does. As Satellite uses a lot of symbolic links it is likely that your system may run out of inodes if using ext4 and the default number of inodes.

When /var/lib/pulp directory is mounted using an NFS share, SELinux blocks the synchronization process. To avoid this, specify the SELinux context of the /var/lib/pulp directory in the file system table by adding the following lines to /etc/fstab:

If NFS share is already mounted, remount it using the above recommendation and enter the following command:

# chcon -R system_u:object_r:httpd_sys_rw_content_t:s0 /var/lib/pulp

2.3. Supported Operating Systems

You can install the operating system from disc, local ISO image, kickstart, or any other method that Red Hat supports. Red Hat Satellite Server and Red Hat Satellite Capsule Server are supported only on the latest versions of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 Server that is available at the time when Satellite 6.3 is installed. Previous versions of Red Hat Enterprise Linux including EUS or z-stream are not supported.

Red Hat Satellite Server and Red Hat Satellite Capsule Server require Red Hat Enterprise Linux installations with the @Base package group with no other package-set modifications, and without third-party configurations or software not directly necessary for the direct operation of the server. This restriction includes hardening and other non-Red Hat security software. If you require such software in your infrastructure, install and verify a complete working Satellite Server first, then create a backup of the system before adding any non-Red Hat software.

It is recommended that the Satellite Server be a freshly provisioned system. It is also recommended that Capsule Servers be freshly provisioned systems and not registered to the Red Hat CDN. Using the system for anything other than running Satellite is not supported.

If any of the following exist on the system, they must be removed before installation:

Java virtual machines

Puppet RPM files

Additional yum repositories other than those explicitly required in this guide for installation

2.4. Supported Browsers

The following web browsers are fully supported:

Firefox versions 39 and later

Chrome versions 28 and later

The following web browsers are partially supported. The Satellite web UI interface functions correctly but certain design elements may not align as expected:

2.5. Ports and Firewalls Requirements

Specific network ports must be open and free on the base operating system, as well as open in any network-based firewalls, to enable the components of Satellite architecture to communicate. The tables in this section explain the need for the ports, and the corresponding firewall commands for host-based firewalls are given in the following section. The installation of a Capsule Server fails if the ports between the Satellite Server and the Capsule Server are not open before installation starts.

The tables indicate the destination port and the direction of network traffic, use this information to configure any network-based firewalls. Note that some cloud solutions need to be specifically configured to allow communications between machines as they isolate machines similarly to network-based firewalls.

Note

The Satellite Server has an integrated Capsule and any host that is directly connected to the Satellite Server is a Client of the Satellite in the context of these tables. This includes the base system on which a Capsule Server is running. Remember to take this into account when planing any network-based firewall configurations.

Systems which are clients of Capsules, other than Satellite’s integrated Capsule, do not need access to the Satellite Server. For more information on Satellite Topology, see Capsule Networking in the Red Hat Satellite Architecture Guide.

Except in the case of a disconnected Satellite, the Satellite Server needs access to the Red Hat CDN. For a list of IP addresses used by the Red Hat CDN (cdn.redhat.com), see the Knowledgebase article Public CIDR Lists for Red Hat on the Red Hat Customer Portal.

Subscription Management Services, yum, Telemetry Services, and for connection to the Katello Agent

5647

TCP

amqp

The Katello Agent to communicate with the Satellite’s Qpid dispatch router

8000

TCP

HTTPS

Anaconda to download kickstart templates to hosts, and for downloading iPXE firmware

8140

TCP

HTTPS

Puppet agent to Puppet master connections

9090

TCP

HTTPS

Sending SCAP reports to the Smart Proxy in the integrated Capsule and for the discovery image during provisioning

5000

TCP

HTTPS

Connection to Katello for the Docker registry

Any managed host that is directly connected to Satellite Server is a client in this context because it is a client of the integrated Capsule. This includes the base system on which a Capsule Server is running.

Table 2.6. Ports for Client to Capsule Communication

Port

Protocol

Service

Required for

80

TCP

HTTP

Anaconda, yum, and for obtaining Katello certificate updates

443

TCP

HTTPS

Anaconda, yum, Telemetry Services, and Puppet

5647

TCP

amqp

The Katello agent to communicate with the Capsule’s Qpid dispatch router

8000

TCP

HTTPS

Anaconda to download kickstart templates to hosts, and for downloading iPXE firmware

8140

TCP

HTTPS

Puppet agent to Puppet master connections

8443

TCP

HTTPS

Subscription Management Services and Telemetry Services

9090

TCP

HTTPS

Sending SCAP reports to the Smart Proxy in the Capsule and for the discovery image during provisioning

5000

TCP

HTTPS

Connection to Katello for the Docker registry

53

TCP and UDP

DNS

Client to Capsule DNS queries to a Capsule’s DNS service (Optional)

67

UDP

DHCP

Client to Capsule broadcasts, DHCP broadcasts for Client provisioning from a Capsule (Optional)

Capsule to Client broadcasts, DHCP broadcasts for Client provisioning from a Capsule (Optional)

8443

TCP

HTTP

Capsule to Client "reboot" command to a discovered host during provisioning (Optional)

Any managed host that is directly connected to Satellite Server is a client in this context because it is a client of the integrated Capsule. This includes the base system on which a Capsule Server is running.

A DHCP Capsule sends an ICMP ECHO to confirm an IP address is free, no response of any kind is expected. ICMP can be dropped by a networked-based firewall, but any response prevents the allocation of IP addresses.

2.6. Enabling Connections from a Client to Satellite Server

Capsules and Content Hosts that are clients of a Satellite Server’s internal Capsule require access through Satellite’s host-based firewall and any network-based firewalls.

Use this section to configure the host-based firewall on the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 system that Satellite is installed on, to enable incoming connections from Clients, and to make the configuration persistent across system reboots. For more information on the ports used, see Section 2.5, “Ports and Firewalls Requirements”.

2.7. Enabling Connections from Capsule Server to Satellite Server

Follow this procedure to enable incoming connections from a Capsule Server to a Satellite Server, and make these rules persistent across reboots. If you do not use an external Capsule Server, you do not need to enable this connection.

2.8. Enabling Connections from Satellite Server and Clients to a Capsule Server

You can enable incoming connections from Satellite Server and clients to Capsule Server and make these rules persistent during reboots. If you do not use an external Capsule Server, you do not need to enable this connection.

Name resolution is critical to the operation of Satellite 6. If Satellite cannot properly resolve its fully qualified domain name, many options fail. Among these options are content management, subscription management, and provisioning.

2.11. Changing Default SELinux ports

Red Hat Satellite 6 uses a set of predefined ports. Because Red Hat recommends that SELinux on Satellite 6 systems be set to permissive or enforcing, if you need to change the port for any service, you also need to change the associated SELinux port type to allow access to the resources. You only need to change these ports if you use non-standard ports.

For example, if you change the Satellite web UI ports (HTTP/HTTPS) to 8018/8019, you need to add these port numbers to the httpd_port_t SELinux port type.

This change is also required for target ports. For example, when Satellite 6 connects to an external source, like Red Hat Virtualization or Red Hat OpenStack Platform.

You only need to make changes to default port assignments once. Updating or upgrading Satellite has no effect on these assignments. Updating only adds default SELinux ports if no assignments exist.

To change the port from the default port to a user-specified port, execute the commands using values that are relevant to your environment. These examples use port 99999 for demonstration purposes.

Default Port

SELinux Command

80, 443, 8443

semanage port -a -t http_port_t -p tcp 99999

8080

semanage port -a -t http_cache_port_t -p tcp 99999

8140

semanage port -a -t puppet_port_t -p tcp 99999

9090

semanage port -a -t websm_port_t -p tcp 99999

69

semanage port -a -t tftp_port_t -p udp 99999

53 (TCP)

semanage port -a -t dns_port_t -p tcp 99999

53 (UDP)

semanage port -a -t dns_port_t -p udp 99999

67, 68

semanage port -a -t dhcpd_port_t -p udp 99999

5671

semanage port -a -t amqp_port_t -p tcp 99999

8000

semanage port -a -t soundd_port_t -p tcp 99999

7911

semanage port -a -t dhcpd_port_t -p tcp 99999

5000 on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7

semanage port -a -t commplex_main_port_t -p tcp 99999

22

semanage port -a -t ssh_port_t -p tcp 99999

16514 (libvirt)

semanage port -a -t virt_port_t -p tcp 99999

389, 636

semanage port -a -t ldap_port_t -p tcp 99999

5910 to 5930

semanage port -a -t vnc_port_t -p tcp 99999

Disassociate the previously used port number and port type.

# semanage port -d -t virt_port_t -p tcp 99999

Chapter 3. Installing Satellite Server

You can use this chapter to find information about installing Red Hat Satellite Server, performing the initial configuration, creating and installing manifests, and performing additional configuration.

Red Hat Satellite 6.3 uses Puppet 3 by default, but you can optionally install Puppet 4 as part of the following installation procedures by enabling the Puppet 4 upgrade repository before running the installation script. To upgrade to Puppet 4 after installation, and for information on upgrading Puppet modules, see the Upgrading Puppet section in the Upgrading and Updating Red Hat Satellite guide.

There are two methods of installing Satellite Server:

Connected:

You can obtain the packages required to install Satellite Server directly from the Red Hat Content Delivery Network (CDN). Using the CDN ensures that your system always receives the latest updates.

Disconnected:

You must use an external computer to download an ISO image of the packages and copy the packages to the system you want to install Satellite Server on. Use an ISO image only if you require a disconnected environment. The ISO image might not contain the latest updates.

Note

You cannot register Satellite Server to itself.

3.1. Installing Satellite Server from a Connected Network

When you install Satellite Server from a connected network, you can obtain packages and receive updates directly from the Red Hat Content Delivery Network.

Note that the Satellite 6 installation script is based on Puppet, which means that if you run the installation script more than once, it might overwrite any manual configuration changes. ⁠ To avoid this and determine which future changes apply, use the --noop argument when you run the installation script. This argument ensures that no actual changes are made. Potential changes are written to /var/log/katello-installer.log.

Files are always backed up and so you can revert any unwanted changes. For example, in the katello-installer logs, you can see an entry similar to the following about Filebucket:

3.1.1. Registering to Red Hat Subscription Management

Registering the host to Red Hat Subscription Management enables the host to subscribe to and consume content for any subscriptions available to the user. This includes content such as Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Red Hat Software Collections (RHSCL), and Red Hat Satellite.

Register your system with the Red Hat Content Delivery Network, entering your Customer Portal user name and password when prompted:

# subscription-manager register

The command displays output similar to the following:

# subscription-manager register
Username: user_name
Password:
The system has been registered with ID: 541084ff2-44cab-4eb1-9fa1-7683431bcf9a

3.1.2. Identifying and Attaching the Satellite Subscription to the Host

After you have registered your host, you need to identify and attach an available Satellite subscription. The Satellite subscription provides access to the Satellite content, as well as Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Red Hat Software Collections (RHSCL), and Red Hat Satellite. This is the only subscription required. Every Red Hat subscription is identified by a Pool ID.

Identify your Satellite subscription.

# subscription-manager list --available --matches 'Red Hat Satellite'

This command performs a case-insensitive search of all available subscriptions' fields, including Subscription Name and Provides, matching any instances of Red Hat Satellite. Subscriptions are classified as available if they are not already attached to a system. The search string may also contain the wildcards ? or * to match a single character or zero or more characters, respectively. The wildcard characters may be escaped with a backslash to represent a literal question mark or asterisk. Likewise, to represent a backslash, it must be escaped with another backslash.

Satellite 6.3 is the last supported release for Puppet 3. You must upgrade from Puppet 3 to Puppet 4 while on Satellite 6.3, and before upgrading to Satellite 6.4. Satellite 6.4 only supports Puppet 5, and the upgrade to Puppet 5 will be made during the Satellite upgrade.

Note

If you are installing Red Hat Satellite as a virtual machine hosted on Red Hat Virtualization (RHV), you also need to enable the Red Hat Common repository, and install RHV guest agents and drivers. For more information, see Installing the Guest Agents and Drivers on Red Hat Enterprise Linux in the Virtual Machine Management Guide for more information.

Ensure that Red Hat Subscription Manager is not set to use a specific operating system release.

3.1.4. Installing the Satellite Server Packages

You must update all packages before installing the Satellite Server packages. After installation, you must perform the initial configuration of Satellite Server, including configuring server certificates, setting your user name, password, and the default organization and location.

3.2. Downloading and Installing from a Disconnected Network

When the intended host for the Red Hat Satellite Server is in a disconnected environment, it is possible to install the Satellite Server by using an ISO image. This method is not recommended for any other situation as ISO images might not contain the latest updates, bug fixes, and functionality.

Note

If the base system has not been updated from the Red Hat CDN, package dependency errors are possible. You must manually download and install the latest version of the required packages. For more information, see Section 3.2.4, “Downloading Packages Manually”.

Before You Begin

A copy of the repositories used in the installation are stored in the /opt/ directory. Ensure you have a minimum of 3 GB of space for this file system and directory.

If the script fails due to installed packages being newer than those required, enter yum distribution-synchronization to downgrade the installed packages to the versions that came from the Red Hat Enterprise Linux ISO, then run the installation script again. This should only occur if you have repositories configured whose source is not the Red Hat Enterprise Linux ISO. Use of such repositories is an unsupported configuration.

3.2.4. Downloading Packages Manually

Ensure that you have the correct product and version for your environment.

Product Variant is set to Red Hat Satellite.

Version is set to the latest minor version of the product you are using as the base system.

Architecture is set to the 64 bit version.

On the Packages tab, enter the name of the package required in the Search box.

Click Download Latest next to the package required.

3.3. Performing the Initial Configuration

This section details how to perform the initial configuration of the host operating system when installing Red Hat Satellite Server. This includes synchronizing the time, installing the sos package, and specifying an installation option.

Before you continue, consider which manifests or packages are relevant for your environment. For more information on manifests, see Managing Subscriptions in the Red Hat Satellite Content Management Guide.

3.3.1. Synchronizing Time

You must start and enable a time synchronizer on the host operating system to minimize the effects of time drift. If a system’s time is incorrect, certificate verification can fail.

Two time synchronizers are available: NTP and chronyd. Each of these has its advantages. chronyd is recommended for systems that are frequently suspended and for systems, such as mobile and virtual systems, that intermittently disconnect and reestablish network connection. NTP is recommended for systems that are expected to remain in running states and are expected to be connected to a network without interruption.

3.3.2. Installing the SOS Package on the Host Operating System

You should install the sos package on the host operating system. The sos package enables you to collect configuration and diagnostic information from a Red Hat Enterprise Linux system. You can also use it to provide the initial system analysis, which is required when opening a service request with Red Hat Technical Support. For more information on using sos, see the Knowledgebase solution What is a sosreport and how to create one in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.6 and later? on the Red Hat Customer Portal.

Install the sos package.

# yum install sos

3.3.3. Specifying Installation Options

Satellite Server is installed using the satellite-installer installation script and as part of the initial configuration, you either automatically or manually configure Satellite.

Choose from one of these two methods:

Automatic Configuration - This method is performed by using an answer file to automate the configuration process when running the installation script. An answer file is a file containing a list of parameters that are read by a command or script. The default Satellite answer file is /etc/foreman-installer/scenarios.d/satellite-answers.yaml. The answer file in use is set by the answer_file directive in the /etc/foreman-installer/scenarios.d/satellite.yaml configuration file.

Manual Configuration - This method is performed by running the installation script with one or more command options. The command options override the corresponding default initial configuration options and are recorded in the Satellite answer file. You can run the script as often as needed to configure any necessary options.

Depending on the options that you use when running the Satellite installer, the configuration can take several minutes to complete. An administrator is able to view the answer file to see previously used options for both methods.

3.3.3.1. Performing the Initial Configuration Manually

This initial configuration procedure creates an organization, location, user name, and password. After the initial configuration, you can create additional organizations and locations if required.

The installation process can take tens of minutes to complete. If you are connecting remotely to the system, consider using a utility such as screen that allows suspending and reattaching a communication session so that you can check the installation progress in case you become disconnected from the remote system. The Red Hat Knowledgebase article How to use the screen command describes installing screen; alternately see the screen manual page for more information. If you lose connection to the shell where the installation command is running, see the log at /var/log/foreman-installer/satellite.log to determine if the process completed successfully.

Manually configuring Satellite Server

Use the satellite-installer --scenario satellite --help command to display the available options and any default values. If you do not specify any values, the default values are used.

It is recommended to specify a meaningful value for the option: --foreman-initial-organization. This can be your company name. An internal label that matches the value is also created and cannot be changed later on. If you do not specify a value, an organization called Default Organization with the label Default_Organization is created. You can rename the organization name but not the label.

By default, all configuration files configured by the installer are managed by Puppet. When satellite-installer runs, it overwrites any manual changes to the Puppet managed files with the initial values. By default, Satellite Server is installed with the Puppet agent running as a service. If required, you can disable Puppet agent on Satellite Server using the --puppet-runmode=none option.

If you want to be able to manage DNS files and DHCP files manually, use the --foreman-proxy-dns-managed=false and --foreman-proxy-dhcp-managed=false options so that Puppet does not manages the files related to the respective services. For more information on how to apply custom configuration on other services, see Appendix C, Applying Custom Configuration to Red Hat Satellite.

The script displays its progress and writes logs to /var/log/foreman-installer/satellite.log.

If you have been installing in a disconnected environment, unmount the ISO images.

# umount /media/sat6
# umount /media/rhel7-server

3.3.3.2. Performing the Initial Configuration Automatically using an Answer File

You can use answer files to automate installations with customized options. The initial answer file is sparsely populated and after you run the satellite-installer script the first time, the answer file is populated with the standard parameter values for installation. If you have already installed Satellite Server using the method described in Section 3.3.3.1, “Performing the Initial Configuration Manually”, then you do not need to use this method. You can, however, use it to make changes to the configuration of Satellite Server at any time.

You should use the FQDN instead of the IP address where possible in case of network changes.

Automatically configuring Satellite Server using an Answer File

Copy the default answer file /etc/foreman-installer/scenarios.d/satellite-answers.yaml to a location on your local file system.

To view all of the configurable options, enter the satellite-installer --scenario satellite --help command.

Open your copy of the answer file, edit the values to suit your environment, and save the file.

Open the /etc/foreman-installer/scenarios.d/satellite.yaml file and edit the answer file entry to point to your custom answer file.

:answer_file: /etc/foreman-installer/scenarios.d/my-answer-file.yaml

Run the satellite-installer script.

# satellite-installer --scenario satellite

If you have been installing in a disconnected environment, unmount the ISO images.

# umount /media/sat6
# umount /media/rhel7-server

3.3.4. Creating a Subscription Allocation in Customer Portal

You can access your subscription information on the Red Hat Customer Portal. You can also assign subscriptions for use in on-premise management applications, such as Red Hat Satellite, using subscription allocations.

Navigate to Subscriptions in the upper-left corner of the Customer Portal.

Navigate to Subscription Allocations.

Click Create New subscription allocation.

In the Name field, enter a name.

From the Type list, select the type and version that corresponds to your Satellite Server.

Click Create.

3.3.5. Adding Subscriptions to an Allocation

The following procedure explains how to add subscriptions to an allocation.

Navigate to Subscription Allocations.

Select the name of the subscription you want to change.

Click the Subscriptions tab.

Click Add Subscriptions.

A list of your Red Hat product subscriptions appears. Enter the Entitlement Quantity for each product.

Click Submit to complete the assignment.

When you have added subscriptions to the allocation, export the manifest file.

3.3.6. Exporting a Subscription Manifest from the Customer Portal

While viewing a subscription allocation that has at least one subscription, you can export a manifest in either of two places:

From the Details tab, under the Subscription section, by clicking the Export Manifest button.

From the Subscriptions tab, by clicking the Export Manifest button.

When the manifest is exported, the Customer Portal encodes the selected subscriptions certificates and creates a .zip archive. This is the Subscription Manifest, which can be uploaded into the Satellite Server.

3.3.6.1. Importing a Subscription Manifest into the Satellite Server

Both the Red Hat Satellite 6 Web UI and CLI provide methods for importing the manifest.

For Web UI Users

Ensure the context is set to the organization you want to use.

Navigate to Content > Red Hat Subscriptions.

Click Manage Manifest to display the manifest page for the organization.

When you complete this section, you can enable repositories and import Red Hat content. This is a prerequisite for some of the following procedures. For more information, see Importing Red Hat Content in the Red Hat Satellite Content Management Guide.

3.4. Performing Additional Configuration

3.4.1. Installing the Satellite Tools Repository

The Satellite Tools repository provides the katello-agent and puppet packages for clients registered to Satellite Server. Installing the katello agent is recommended to allow remote updates of clients. The base system of a Capsule Server is a client of Satellite Server and therefore should also have the katello agent installed.

If the Red Hat Satellite Tools 6.3 items are not visible, it may be because they are not included in the Subscription Manifest obtained from the Customer Portal. To correct that, log in to the Customer Portal, add these repositories, download the Subscription Manifest and import it into Satellite.

Select the Enabled check box next to the Satellite 6.3 Tools repository’s name.

Enable the Satellite Tools repository for every supported major version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux running on your hosts. After enabling a Red Hat repository, a Product for this repository is automatically created.

To Synchronize the Satellite Tools Repository:

Go to Content > Sync Status.

A list of product repositories available for synchronization is displayed.

Click the arrow next to the product content to view available content.

Select the content you want to synchronize.

Click Synchronize Now.

3.4.2. Configuring Satellite Server with HTTP Proxy

If your network uses an HTTP Proxy, you can configure Satellite Server to use it. Use the FQDN instead of the IP address where possible to avoid losing connectivity because of network changes.

Authentication Methods

Only basic authentication is supported: add your username and password information to the --katello-proxy-url option, or use the --katello-proxy-username and --katello-proxy-password options.

To Configure Satellite with an HTTP Proxy

Verify that the http_proxy, https_proxy, and no_proxy variables are not set.

SELinux ensures access of Red Hat Satellite 6 and Red Hat Subscription Manager only to specific ports. In the case of the HTTP cache, the TCP ports are 8080, 8118, 8123, and 10001 - 10010. If you use a port that does not have SELinux type http_cache_port_t, complete the following steps:

To verify the ports that are permitted by SELinux for the HTTP cache, enter a command as follows:

3.4.3. Enabling Power Management on Managed Hosts

When you enable the baseboard management controller (BMC) module on Satellite Server, you can use power management commands on managed hosts using the intelligent platform management interface (IPMI) or a similar protocol.

The BMC service enables you to perform a range of power management tasks. The underlying protocol for this feature is IPMI; also referred to as the BMC function. IPMI uses a special network interface on the managed hardware that is connected to a dedicated processor that runs independently of the host’s CPUs. In many instances the BMC functionality is built into chassis-based systems as part of chassis management (a dedicated module in the chassis).

For more information about configuring DHCP, DNS, and TFTP services, see the Configuring Network Services section in the Provisioning Guide.

The script displays its progress and writes logs to /var/log/foreman-installer/satellite.log. You can view the settings used, including the admin_password parameter, in the /etc/foreman-installer/scenarios.d/satellite-answers.yaml file.

Note

Any changes to the settings require running satellite-installer again. You can run the script multiple times and it updates all configuration files with the changed values.

3.4.5. Disabling DNS, DHCP, and TFTP for Unmanaged Networks

Satellite 6 provides full management capabilities for TFTP, DHCP, and DNS network services running on Satellite’s internal or external Capsules. If you want to manage those services manually or use some external method, then Satellite 6 cannot directly integrate with them. While it is possible to develop custom integration scripts using Foreman Hooks (such as creating DNS records after a new host is created), this integration, also known as orchestration, must be disabled in order to prevent DHCP and DNS validation errors.

In the web UI, go to Infrastructure > Subnets and select a subnet.

On the Capsules tab, ensure that there is no DHCP Capsule or TFTP Capsule associated by setting the drop-down list to None.

Disable forward record orchestration.

Go to Infrastructure > Domains and select a domain.

On the Domain tab, setting the DNS Capsule drop-down list to None.

Disable reverse (PTR) record orchestration.

Go to Infrastructure > Subnets and select a subnet.

On the Capsules tab, setting the Reverse DNS Capsule drop-down list to None.

Optional: If you use a DHCP service supplied by a third party, configure your DHCP server to pass the following options:

Satellite 6 does not perform orchestration when a Capsule is not set for a given subnet and domain. When enabling or disabling Capsule associations, orchestration commands for existing hosts can fail if the expected records and configuration files are not present. When associating a Capsule in order to turn orchestration on, make sure the required DHCP and DNS records as well as the TFTP files are in place for existing Satellite 6 managed hosts in order to prevent host deletion failures in the future.

3.4.6. Configuring Satellite Server for Outgoing Emails

To send email messages from Satellite Server, you can use either an SMTP server, or the sendmail command.

Prerequisites

If you have upgraded from a previous release, rename or remove the configuration file /usr/share/foreman/config/email.yaml and restart the httpd service. For example:

Alternatively, in the web UI, set the SMTP enable StartTLS auto option to No.

Click Test email to send a test message to the user’s email address to confirm the configuration is working. If a message fails to send, the web UI displays an error. See the log at /var/log/foreman/production.log for further details.

3.4.7. Configuring Satellite Server with a Custom Server Certificate

SSL certificates are used to protect information and enable secure communication. Red Hat Satellite 6 creates self-signed SSL certificates to enable encrypted communications between the Satellite Server, external Capsule Servers, and all hosts. Instead of using these self-signed certificates, you can install custom SSL certificates issued by a Certificate Authority which is an external, trusted company. For example, your company might have a security policy stating that SSL certificates must be obtained from a Certificate Authority. To obtain the certificate, create a Certificate Signing Request and send it to the Certificate Authority, as described in Section 3.4.7.1, “Obtain an SSL Certificate for the Satellite Server”. In return, you receive a signed SSL certificate.

Note

Obtain custom SSL certificates for the Satellite Server and all external Capsule Servers before starting this procedure.

To use a custom certificate on Satellite Server, complete these steps:

3.4.7.1. Obtain an SSL Certificate for the Satellite Server

If you already have a custom SSL Certificate for the Satellite Server, skip this procedure.

Create a directory to contain all the source certificate files, accessible to only the root user.

In these examples, the directory is /root/sat_cert.

# mkdir /root/sat_cert
# cd /root/sat_cert

Create a private key with which to sign the Certificate Signing Request (CSR).

Note

If you already have a private key for the Satellite Server, skip this step.

# openssl genrsa -out /root/sat_cert/satellite_cert_key.pem 4096

Create a Certificate Signing Request (CSR)

A Certificate Signing Request is a text file containing details of the server for which you are requesting a certificate. For this command, you provide the private key (output by the previous step), answer some questions about the Satellite Server, and the Certificate Signing Request is created.

Note

The certificate’s Common Name (CN) must match the fully-qualified domain name (FQDN) of the server on which it is used. If you are requesting a certificate for a Satellite Server, this is the FQDN of the Satellite Server. If you are requesting a certificate for a Capsule Server, this is the FQDN of the Capsule Server.

To confirm a server’s FQDN, enter the following command on that server: hostname -f.

You are about to be asked to enter information that will be incorporated
into your certificate request.
What you are about to enter is what is called a Distinguished Name or a DN.
There are quite a few fields but you can leave some blank
For some fields there will be a default value,
If you enter '.', the field will be left blank.
Country Name (2 letter code) [XX]:AU
State or Province Name (full name) []:Queensland
Locality Name (eg, city) [Default City]:Brisbane
Organization Name (eg, company) [Default Company Ltd]:Example
Organizational Unit Name (eg, section) []:Sales
Common Name (eg, your name or your server's hostname) []:satellite.example.com
Email Address []:example@example.com
Please enter the following 'extra' attributes
to be sent with your certificate request
A challenge password []:password
An optional company name []:Example

Send the certificate request to the Certificate Authority.

When you submit the request, be sure to specify the lifespan of the certificate. The method for sending the certificate request varies, so consult the Certificate Authority for the preferred method. In response to the request you can expect to receive a Certificate Authority bundle, and a signed certificate, in separate files.

3.4.7.2. Validate the Satellite Server’s SSL Certificate

Enter the katello-certs-check command with the required parameters as per the following example. This validates the input files required for custom certificates and outputs the commands necessary to install them on the Satellite Server, all Capsule Servers, and hosts under management with Satellite.

3.4.7.3. Run the Satellite Installer with Custom Certificate Parameters

Now that you have created an SSL certificate and verified it is valid for use with Red Hat Satellite 6, the next step is to install the custom SSL certificate on the Satellite Server and all its hosts.

There is a minor variation to this step, depending on whether or not the Satellite Server is already installed. If it is already installed, the existing certificates must be updated with those in the certificates archive.

Important parameters in this command include --certs-update-server and --certs-update-server-ca, which specify that the server’s SSL certificate and certificate authority are to be updated. For a brief description of all the installer’s parameters, enter the command: satellite-installer --scenario satellite --help.

Note

For all files in the satellite-installer command, use full path names, not relative path names. The installer records all files' paths and names, and if you enter the installer again, but from a different directory, it may fail as it is unable to find the original files.

If Satellite is not already installed, enter the following command on the Satellite Server:

For all files in the satellite-installer command, use full path names, not relative path names. The installer records all files' paths and names, and if you enter the installer again, but from a different directory, it may fail as it is unable to find the original files.

Verify the certificate has been successfully installed on the Satellite Server before installing it on hosts. On a computer with network access to the Satellite Server, start a web browser, navigate to the URL https://satellite.example.com and view the certificate’s details.

3.4.7.4. Install the New Certificate on all Hosts Connected to the Satellite Server

Now that the custom SSL certificate has been installed on the Satellite Server, it must also be installed on every host registered to the Satellite Server. Enter the following commands on all applicable hosts.

Chapter 4. Installing Capsule Server

Before you install Capsule Server, you should ensure that your environment meets the requirements for installation. Capsule Server has the same requirements for installation as Satellite Server, with the additional requirement that you have not configured it to use a proxy to connect to the Red Hat CDN. For more information, see Section 2.1, “System Requirements”.

4.1. Registering Capsule Server to Satellite Server

Before You Begin

The Satellite Server must have a manifest installed with the appropriate repositories for the organization you intend to subscribe to. The manifest must contain repositories for the Capsule’s base system as well as any clients connected to the Capsule. The repositories must be synchronized. For more information on manifests and repositories, see Managing Subscriptions in the Red Hat Satellite Content Management Guide.

The Satellite Server’s base system must be able to resolve the host name of the Capsule Server’s base system and vice versa.

You must revert any changes related to the use of proxies which prevent access to Red Hat Satellite.

4.2. Identifying and Attaching the Capsule Server Subscription

After you have registered the Capsule Server, you must identify your Capsule Server subscription Pool ID. The Pool ID enables you to attach the required subscription to your Capsule Server. The Capsule Server subscription provides access to the Capsule Server content, as well as Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Red Hat Software Collections (RHSCL), and Red Hat Satellite. This is the only subscription required.

4.4. Synchronizing Time

You must start and enable a time synchronizer on the host operating system to minimize the effects of time drift. If a system’s time is incorrect, certificate verification can fail.

Two time synchronizers are available: NTP and chronyd. Each of these has its advantages. chronyd is recommended for systems that are frequently suspended and for systems, such as mobile and virtual systems, that intermittently disconnect and reestablish network connection. NTP is recommended for systems that are expected to remain in running states and are expected to be connected to a network without interruption.

When network connections or ports to the Satellite are not yet open, you can set the --foreman-proxy-register-in-foreman option to false to prevent Capsule from attempting to connect to Satellite and reporting errors. Run the installer again with this option set to true when the network and firewalls are correctly configured.

4.7. Performing Additional Configuration on Capsule Server

4.7.1. Installing the katello Agent

Installing the katello agent is recommended to allow remote updates of clients. The base system of a Capsule Server is a client of Satellite Server and therefore should also have the katello agent installed.

Before You Begin

You must have enabled the Satellite Tools repositories in Satellite Server.

You must have synchronized the Satellite Tools repositories in Satellite Server.

4.7.3. Adding Life Cycle Environments to Capsule Servers

If your Capsule Server has content functionality enabled, you must add one or more life cycle environments to it. Adding an environment enables Capsule Server to synchronize content from Satellite Server and provide content to host systems.

Red Hat recommends that you create one or multiple life cycle environments and assign them to your Capsule Server. This ensures that Capsule receives only the repositories contained in Content Views that are promoted to the respective life cycle environments, and results in optimizing the usage of system resources.

Note

Avoid assigning the Library Lifecycle Environment to your Capsule Server as it triggers an automated Capsule sync every time a repository is updated from the CDN. This may consume multiple system resources on Capsules, network bandwidth between Satellite and Capsules, and available disk space on Capsules.

Capsule Server is configurable using Hammer CLI on Satellite Server, or through the web UI.

To add Life Cycle Environments to Capsule Servers using Hammer CLI:

Log in to the Satellite Server CLI as root.

Display a list of all Capsule Servers and note the ID:

# hammer capsule list

Using the ID, verify the details of your Capsule Server:

# hammer capsule info --id capsule_id_number

Verify the life cycle environments available and note the environment ID:

In the Satellite web UI, go to Infrastructure > Capsules, and select the Capsule.

Click Edit.

Select Env in the Life Cycle Environments tab.

To synchronize capsule’s content, click the Synchronize button in the Overview tab.

Select one of two options:

Optimized Sync

Complete Sync

4.7.4. Enabling Power Management on Managed Hosts

When you enable the baseboard management controller (BMC) module on the Capsule Server, you can use power management commands on managed hosts using the intelligent platform management interface (IPMI) or a similar protocol.

The BMC service on the satellite Capsule Server enables you to perform a range of power management tasks. The underlying protocol for this feature is IPMI; also referred to as the BMC function. IPMI uses a special network interface on the managed hardware that is connected to a dedicated processor that runs independently of the host’s CPUs. In many instances the BMC functionality is built into chassis-based systems as part of chassis management (a dedicated module in the chassis).

For more information about configuring DHCP, DNS, and TFTP services, see the Configuring Network Services section in the Provisioning Guide.

4.7.6. Configuring Capsule Server with a Custom Server Certificate

Red Hat Satellite 6 includes default SSL certificates to enable encrypted communications between the Satellite Server, Capsule Servers, and all hosts. You can replace the default certificates with custom certificates if required. For example, your company’s security policy might dictate that SSL certificates must be obtained from a specific Certificate Authority.

4.7.6.1. Obtain an SSL Certificate for the Capsule Server

This procedure generates PEM encoded certificates. Only PEM encoding must be used for the SSL Certificates.

Note

Do not use the Satellite Server’s certificate on any Capsule Server as each server’s certificate is unique.

Create a directory to contain all the source certificate files, accessible to only the root user.

# mkdir /root/capsule_cert
# cd /root/capsule_cert

In these examples, the directory is /root/capsule_cert. If you have multiple Capsule Servers, name the directory to match. For example, if you have Capsule Servers named capsule_apac and capsule_emea, you might create directories named capsule_apac and capsule_emea respectively. This is not required, but reduces the risk of using files from one Capsule Server on another Capsule Server.

Create a private key with which to sign the Certificate Signing Request (CSR).

Note

If you already have a private key for the Capsule Server, skip this step.

# openssl genrsa -out /root/capsule_cert/capsule_cert_key.pem 4096

Create a Certificate Signing Request (CSR).

A Certificate Signing Request is a text file containing details of the server for which you are requesting a certificate. For this command, you provide the private key (output by the previous step), answer some questions about the Capsule Server, and the Certificate Signing Request is stored in a file.

Note

The certificate’s Common Name (CN) must match the fully-qualified domain name (FQDN) of the server on which it is used.

To confirm a server’s FQDN, enter the command hostname -f on the server.

You are about to be asked to enter information that will be incorporated
into your certificate request.
What you are about to enter is what is called a Distinguished Name or a DN.
There are quite a few fields but you can leave some blank
For some fields there will be a default value,
If you enter '.', the field will be left blank.
Country Name (2 letter code) [XX]:AU
State or Province Name (full name) []:Queensland
Locality Name (eg, city) [Default City]:Brisbane
Organization Name (eg, company) [Default Company Ltd]:Example
Organizational Unit Name (eg, section) []:Sales
Common Name (eg, your name or your server's hostname) []:capsule.example.com
Email Address []:example@example.com
Please enter the following 'extra' attributes
to be sent with your certificate request
A challenge password []:password
An optional company name []:Example

Send the certificate signing request to the Certificate Authority.

When you submit the request, be sure to specify the lifespan of the certificate. The method for sending the certificate signing request varies, so consult the Certificate Authority for the preferred method. In response to the request you can expect to receive a Certificate Authority bundle, and a signed certificate, in separate files.

4.7.6.2. Validate the Capsule Server’s SSL Certificate

On the Satellite Server, validate the Capsule Server’s certificate input files with the katello-certs-check command. This process requires that you have copied the Capsule Server key, CSR, and SSL certificate from Capsule Server to Satellite Server.

4.7.6.3. Create the Capsule Server’s Certificate Archive File

The Capsule Server’s installer requires the server certificates to be in an archive file. To create this file, use the capsule-certs-generate command on the Satellite Server.

The capsule-certs-generate command must be run once for every external Capsule Server. In these examples, capsule.example.com is the example FQDN and capsule_certs.tar the example archive file’s name. Replace these with values appropriate to your environment, taking care not to overwrite an existing certificate archive file. For example, if you have Capsule Servers named capsule1 and capsule2, you can name the certificate archive files capsule1_certs.tar and capsule2_certs.tar.

Edit the value for --foreman-proxy-content-certs-tar to match the location of the certificates archive file.

If you want to enable additional features on the Capsule Server, append their parameters to the satellite-installer command. For a description of all the installer’s parameters, enter the command satellite-installer --scenario capsule --help.

Copy the modified satellite-installer command from the text editor to the terminal.

The satellite-installer command, as output by the capsule-certs-generate command, is unique to each Capsule Server. Do not use the same command on more than one Capsule Server.

Do NOT delete the certificates archive file (the .tar file) even after the certificates have been deployed to all relevant hosts. It is required, for example, when upgrading the Capsule Server. If the certificates archive file is not found by the installer, it fails with a message similar to the following:

Chapter 5. Configuring External Services

Some environments have existing DNS, DHCP, and TFTP services and do not need to use the Satellite Server to provide these services. If you want to use external servers to provide DNS, DHCP, or TFTP, you can configure them for use with Satellite Server.

The following example configures a domain virtual.lan as one subnet 192.168.38.0/24, a security key named capsule, and sets forwarders to Google’s public DNS addresses (8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4). 192.168.38.2 is the IP address of a DNS server and 192.168.38.1 is the IP address of a Satellite Server or a Capsule Server.

It is recommended to set up a lease range and reservation range separately to prevent conflicts. For example, the lease range is 192.168.38.10 to 192.168.38.100 so the reservation range (defined in the Satellite web UI) is 192.168.38.101 to 192.168.38.250. Do not set DHCP Capsule for the defined Subnet yet.

If the TFTP service is running on a different server than the DHCP service, update the tftp_servername setting with the FQDN or IP address of that server.

# satellite-installer --foreman-proxy-tftp-servername=new_FQDN

This updates all configuration files with the new value.

Log in to the Satellite Server web UI.

Go to Infrastructure > Capsules. Locate the appropriate Capsule Server and from the Actions drop-down list, select Refresh. The TFTP feature should appear.

Associate the TFTP service with the appropriate subnets and domain.

5.8. Configuring Satellite with External IdM DNS

Red Hat Satellite can be configured to use a Red Hat Identity Management (IdM) server to provide the DNS service. Two methods are described here to achieve this, both using a transaction key. For more information on Red Hat Identity Management, see the Linux Domain Identity, Authentication, and Policy Guide.

The first method is to install the IdM client which automates the process with the generic security service algorithm for secret key transaction (GSS-TSIG) technology defined in RFC3645. This method requires installing the IdM client on the Satellite Server or Capsule’s base system and having an account created by the IdM server administrator for use by the Satellite administrator. See Section 5.8.1, “Configuring Dynamic DNS Update with GSS-TSIG Authentication” to use this method.

The second method, secret key transaction authentication for DNS (TSIG), uses an rndc.key for authentication. It requires root access to the IdM server to edit the BIND configuration file, installing the BIND utility on the Satellite Server’s base system, and coping the rndc.key to between the systems. This technology is defined in RFC2845. See Section 5.8.2, “Configuring Dynamic DNS Update with TSIG Authentication” to use this method.

Note

You are not required to use Satellite to manage DNS. If you are using the Realm enrollment feature of Satellite, where provisioned hosts are enrolled automatically to IdM, then the ipa-client-install script creates DNS records for the client. The following procedure and Realm enrollment are therefore mutually exclusive. For more information on configuring Realm enrollment, see External Authentication for Provisioned Hosts in Administering Red Hat Satellite.

Determining where to install the IdM Client

When Satellite Server wants to add a DNS record for a host, it first determines which Capsule is providing DNS for that domain. It then communicates with the Capsule and adds the record. The hosts themselves are not involved in this process. This means you should install and configure the IdM client on the Satellite or Capsule that is currently configured to provide a DNS service for the domain you want to manage using the IdM server.

5.8.1. Configuring Dynamic DNS Update with GSS-TSIG Authentication

In this example, Satellite Server has the following settings.

Host name

satellite.example.com

Network

192.168.55.0/24

The IdM server has the following settings.

Host name

idm1.example.com

Domain name

example.com

Before you Begin.

Confirm the IdM server is deployed and the host-based firewall has been configured correctly. For more information, see Port Requirements in the Linux Domain Identity, Authentication, and Policy Guide.

Obtain an account on the IdM server with permissions to create zones on the IdM server.

Confirm if the Satellite or an external Capsule is managing DNS for a domain.

Confirm that the Satellite or external Capsule are currently working as expected.

In the case of a newly installed system, complete the installation procedures in this guide first. In particular, DNS and DHCP configuration should have been completed.

When adding a keytab to a standby system with the same host name as the original system in service, add the r option to prevent generating new credentials and rendering the credentials on the original system invalid.

Set the group and owner for the keytab file to foreman-proxy as follows.

After you have run the installation script to make any changes to a Capsule, instruct Satellite to scan the configuration on each affected Capsule as follows:

Navigate to Infrastructure > Capsules.

For each Capsule to be updated, from the Actions drop-down menu, select Refresh.

Configure the domain:

Go to Infrastructure > Domains and select the domain name.

On the Domain tab, ensure DNS Capsule is set to the Capsule where the subnet is connected.

Configure the subnet:

Go to Infrastructure > Subnets and select the subnet name.

On the Subnet tab, set IPAM to None.

On the Domains tab, ensure the domain to be managed by the IdM server is selected.

On the Capsules tab, ensure Reverse DNS Capsule is set to the Capsule where the subnet is connected.

Click Submit to save the changes.

5.8.2. Configuring Dynamic DNS Update with TSIG Authentication

In this example, Satellite Server has the following settings.

IP address

192.168.25.1

Host name

satellite.example.com

The IdM server has the following settings.

Host name

idm1.example.com

IP address

192.168.25.2

Domain name

example.com

Before you Begin

Confirm the IdM Server is deployed and the host-based firewall has been configured correctly. For more information, see Port Requirements in the Linux Domain Identity, Authentication, and Policy Guide.

Obtain root user privileges on the IdM server.

Confirm if the Satellite or an external Capsule is managing DNS for a domain.

Confirm that the Satellite or external Capsule are currently working as expected.

In the case of a newly installed system, complete the installation procedures in this guide first. In particular, DNS and DHCP configuration should have been completed.

After you have run the installation script to make any changes to a Capsule, instruct Satellite to scan the configuration on each affected Capsule as follows:

Navigate to Infrastructure > Capsules.

For each Capsule to be updated, from the Actions drop-down menu, select Refresh.

Configure the domain:

Go to Infrastructure > Domains and select the domain name.

On the Domain tab, ensure DNS Capsule is set to the Capsule where the subnet is connected.

Configure the subnet:

Go to Infrastructure > Subnets and select the subnet name.

On the Subnet tab, set IPAM to DHCP or Internal DB.

On the Domains tab, ensure the domain to be managed by the Satellite or Capsule is selected.

On the Capsules tab, ensure Reverse DNS Capsule is set to the Capsule where the subnet is connected.

Click Submit to save the changes.

Chapter 6. Uninstalling Satellite Server and Capsule Server

If you no longer need Satellite Server or Capsule Server, you can uninstall them.

6.1. Uninstalling Satellite Server

Uninstalling Satellite Server and Capsule Server erases all applications used on the target system. If you use any applications or application data for purposes other than Satellite Server, you should back up the information before the removal process.

Before you Begin

The katello-remove script issues two warnings, requiring confirmation before removing all packages and configuration files in the system.

Warning

This script erases many packages and config files, such as the following important packages:

httpd (apache)

mongodb

tomcat6

puppet

ruby

rubygems

All Katello and Foreman Packages

Uninstall Satellite Server

Uninstall Satellite Server.

# katello-remove

The following message displays:

Once these packages and configuration files are removed there is no going back.
If you use this system for anything other than Katello and Foreman you probably
do not want to execute this script.
Read the source for a list of what is removed. Are you sure(Y/N)? y
ARE YOU SURE?: This script permanently deletes data and configuration.
Read the source for a list of what is removed. Type [remove] to continue? remove
Shutting down Katello services...

6.2. Uninstalling Capsule Servers

Uninstalling Capsule Server erases all applications used on the target system. If you use any applications or application data for purposes other than Satellite Server, you must back up the information before the removal process.

Before you Begin

The katello-remove script issues two warnings, requiring confirmation before removing all packages and configuration files in the system.

Warning

This script erases packages and config files such as the following:

httpd (apache)

mongodb

tomcat6

puppet

ruby

rubygems

All Katello and Foreman Packages

Uninstall Capsule Server

Uninstall Capsule Server.

# katello-remove

The following message displays:

Once these packages and configuration files are removed there is no going back.
If you use this system for anything other than Katello and Foreman you probably
do not want to execute this script.
Read the source for a list of what is removed. Are you sure(Y/N)? y
ARE YOU SURE?: This script permanently deletes data and configuration.
Read the source for a list of what is removed. Type [remove] to continue? remove
Shutting down Katello services...

Chapter 7. Where to find more information

At the end of the initial installation and setup, you can perform additional configuration and set up your Satellite environment. You can use the following Satellite documentation resources to assist you:

Chapter 8. Running Red Hat Satellite on Amazon Web Services

Use this guide to ensure that you make all the necessary preparations for installing Red Hat Satellite Server and Capsules in Amazon Web Services (AWS) Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2).

Use the Deployment Scenarios section to understand the different architecture setups that are available for Satellite and Capsule installation on AWS.

Use the Prerequisites section to prepare your Red Hat and Amazon Web resources for the Red Hat Satellite installation.

Subscriptions

Not all subscriptions are eligible to run in public cloud environments. For more information about subscription eligibility, see the Cloud Access Page. You can create additional organizations and then import additional manifests to the organizations. For more information, see Creating an Organization in the Content Management Guide.

8.1. Use case considerations

Because Amazon Web Services is an image-only service, there are common Satellite use cases that do not work, or require extra configuration in an Amazon Web Service environment. If you plan to use Satellite on AWS, ensure that the use case scenarios that you want to use are available in an AWS environment.

If you want Satellite to use multiple interfaces with distinct host names, you must perform additional configuration of the Satellite Server and Satellite Capsule Server CA certificates. If you want to deploy Satellite in this configuration, contact Red Hat.

You must do this when Satellite Server or Capsule Server has different internal and external DNS host names and there is no site-to-site VPN connection between the locations where you deploy Satellite Server and Capsule Server.

On demand content sources

You can use the On demand download policy to reduce the storage footprint of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux server that runs Satellite. When you set the download policy to On Demand, content syncs to the Satellite Server or Capsule Server when a content host requests it.

8.1.2. Use Cases that Do Not Work

In AWS, you cannot manage the DHCP. Because of this, most of Satellite Server’s kickstart and PXE provisioning models are unusable. This includes:

PXE Provisioning

Discovery and Discovery Rules

ISO Provisioning methods.

PXE-Less Discovery (iPXE)

Per-host ISO

Generic ISO

Full-host ISO

8.2. Deployment Scenarios

There are three deployment scenarios for Red Hat Satellite in Amazon Web Services:

One region setup

Connecting on-premise and AWS region

Connecting different regions

Scenario 1: One region setup

The least complex configuration of Satellite Server in Amazon Web Services consists of both the Satellite Server and the content hosts residing within the same region and within the Virtual Private Cloud (VPC).

You can also use a different availability zone.

Scenario 2: Connecting on-premise and AWS region

Create a VPN connection between the on-premise location and the AWS region where the Capsule resides.

It is also possible to use the external host name of Satellite Server when you register the instance which runs Capsule Server.

Option 1: Site-to-Site VPN connection between the AWS region and the On-Premise Datacenter

Option 2: Direct connection using the External DNS host name

Scenario 3: Connecting different regions

Create a site-to-site VPN connection between the different regions so that you can use the Internal DNS host name when you register the instance that runs Capsule Server to the Satellite Server.

If you do not establish a site-to-site VPN connection, use the external DNS host name when you register the instance that runs Capsule Server to the Satellite Server.

Note

Most Public Cloud Providers do not charge for data being transferred into a region, or between availability zones within a single region; however, they do charge for data leaving the region to the Internet.

Option 1: Site-to-Site VPN connection between AWS regions

Option 2: Direct connection using the External DNS host name

8.3. Prerequisites

Before you can install and register Red Hat Satellite and Capsule, you must set up accounts with Amazon Web Services (AWS) and create and start Red Hat Enterprise Linux instances on AWS.

8.3.1. Amazon Web Service Assumptions

To use this guide, you must have a working knowledge of the following aspects of Amazon Web Services:

Optional: store other data, for example, the mongodb directory on a separate EBS volume.

If you want the Satellite Server and Capsule Server to communicate using external DNS hostnames, open the required ports for communication in the AWS Security Group that is associated with the instance.

8.3.4. Preparing for the Red Hat Satellite Installation

In your AWS environment, complete the following steps:

Launch an EC2 instance of a Red Hat Enterprise Linux AMI

Connect to the newly created instance.

If you use a Red Hat Gold Image, remove the RHUI client and set the enabled parameter in the product-id.conf to 1.

Appendix A. Large Deployment Considerations

Increasing the Maximum Number of File Descriptors for Apache

With more than 800 content hosts registered, Apache can reach several system-level limits, resulting in new content host registration failure. To avoid this, file descriptor limits must be increased before deploying a large number of content hosts.

Create the /etc/systemd/system/httpd.service.d/limits.conf file and insert the following text:

[Service]
LimitNOFILE=65536

Apply the changes to the unit.

# systemctl daemon-reload

Restart Katello services.

# katello-service restart

Increasing the Maximum Number of File Descriptors for qpid

With more than 1100 content hosts with goferd running for errata updates, the qpid reach system-level limits, resulting in registration failures. To avoid this, file descriptors limits must be increased before deploying a large number of content hosts.

Increasing the Maximum Number of File Descriptors for qpid

Create the /etc/systemd/system/qpidd.service.d/limits.conf file and insert the following text:

[Service]
LimitNOFILE=65536

Apply the changes to the unit.

# systemctl daemon-reload
# systemctl restart qpidd.service

Increasing the Shared Buffer and Work Memory

You can increase the shared_buffer and work_mem to 256M and 4M respectively.

On Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7, create the /var/lib/pgsql/data/postgresql.conf file and insert the following text:

work_mem = 4MB
shared_buffers = 256MB

Restart postgresql services.

# systemctl restart postgresql

Increasing Concurrent Content Host Registrations

To avoid reaching system-level limits, you can increase the global passenger queue limit to accommodate up to 250 concurrent content hosts. For more information, see Passenger Configuration in the Tuning Red Hat Satellite Guide. Follow these steps to increase the global passenger queue limit.

Adjust the maximum passenger pool size to 1.5 times the physical CPU cores available to the Satellite Server.

For example, if you have a Satellite Server with 16 cores, then the maximum passenger pool size is 24. This number is referenced as an example and you should use the number applicable to your environment.

Edit the /etc/httpd/conf.d/passenger.conf file, updating the IfModule stanza to match the following text:

Change the maximum connections in the /var/lib/pgsql/data/postgresql.conf file.

max_connections = 500

Restart postgresql services.

# systemctl restart postgresql

Increasing the maximum number of open files for qdrouterd

With more than 1000 content hosts registered, qdrouterd can reach the default maximum number of open files. To avoid this, increase the maximum number of open files on the Satellite Server and all external Capsule Servers.

Calculate the required maximum number of open files, using the following equation.

(3 x number of content hosts) + 100

For example, with 1020 content hosts, the new maximum should be set to 3160 ((3 x 1020) + 100).

Create the file /etc/systemd/system/qdrouterd.service.d/limits.conf and add the following text.

[Service]
LimitNOFILE=maximum_number_of_files

Apply the changes to the unit.

# systemctl daemon-reload

Restart the Satellite services.

# katello-service restart

Reducing delays in host registration

Communication between Satellite and each registered host is secured by use of certificates. When a host is registered, Satellite creates two certificates, an identity certificate and a Puppet certificate. The algorithm used to create each certificate requires random data from the Red Hat Enterprise Linux kernel. If not enough entropy is available when a host is registered, there is a delay until a suitable level of entropy is available. In very large environments, with more than 10,000 hosts, the rate of host registration is likely to be slowed by the lack of entropy. Several methods can be used to improve the availability of entropy to the Linux kernel, and so reduce the risk to performance of Satellite.

By default, the Linux kernel uses the /dev/random device as the source of random numbers. This is a blocking device, which means it stops supplying numbers when it determines that the amount of entropy is insufficient for generating a properly random output. It is this wait time which causes the delay in registering hosts. To resolve this issue, use the /dev/urandom device, as this is a non-blocking device.

Some hardware servers have processors which include hardware random number generators. For those that are supported by the Red Hat Enterprise Linux kernel, you can use that as the source of random numbers. For more information, see the hardware vendor’s documentation.

If Satellite is hosted on a virtual machine, note that some hypervisors make the hardware server’s random number generator available to the virtual machines it hosts. Red Hat Virtualization features the virtio RNG (Random Number Generator) device that provides KVM virtual machines access to entropy from the Red Hat Virtualization Host. On guests running Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.0, you must install and configure rngd. On guests running Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.1 and later, the guest kernel fetches entropy from the host as required. If a host’s random number generator is shared by guests, use of a hardware random number generator is recommended.

For more information about random number generators for guests, see Random Number Generator Device in the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 Virtualization Deployment and Administration Guide. For other hypervisors, see the vendor’s documentation.

Appendix B. Capsule Server Scalability Considerations

The maximum number of Capsule Servers that the Satellite Server can support has no fixed limit. The tested limit is 17 Capsule Servers with 2 vCPUs on a Satellite Server with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7. However, scalability is highly variable, especially when managing Puppet clients.

Capsule Server scalability when managing Puppet clients depends on the number of CPUs, the run-interval distribution, and the number of Puppet managed resources. The Capsule Server has a limitation of 100 concurrent Puppet agents running at any single point in time. Running more than 100 concurrent Puppet agents results in a 503 HTTP error.

For example, assuming that Puppet agent runs are evenly distributed with less than 100 concurrent Puppet agents running at any single point during a run-interval, a Capsule Server with 4 CPUs has a maximum of 1250-1600 Puppet clients with a moderate workload of 10 Puppet classes assigned to each Puppet client. Depending on the number of Puppet clients required, the Satellite installation can scale out the number of Capsule Servers to support them.

If you want to scale your Capsule Server when managing Puppet clients, the following assumptions are made:

There are no external Puppet clients reporting directly to the Satellite 6 integrated Capsule.

All other Puppet clients report directly to an external Capsule.

There is an evenly distributed run-interval of all Puppet agents.

Note

Deviating from the even distribution increases the risk of filling the passenger request queue. The limit of 100 concurrent requests applies.

The following table describes the scalability limits using the recommended 4 CPUs.

Table B.1. Puppet Scalability Using 4 CPUs

Puppet Managed Resources per Host

Run-Interval Distribution

1

3000-2500

10

2400-2000

20

1700-1400

The following table describes the scalability limits using the minimum 2 CPUs.

Appendix C. Applying Custom Configuration to Red Hat Satellite

When you install and configure Satellite for the first time using satellite-installer, you can specify that the DNS and DHCP configuration files are not to be managed by Puppet using the installer flags --foreman-proxy-dns-managed=false and --foreman-proxy-dhcp-managed=false. If these flags are not specified during the initial installer run, rerunning of the installer overwrites all manual changes, for example, rerun for upgrade purposes. If changes are overwritten, you must run the restore procedure to restore the manual changes. For more information, see How to Restore Manual Changes Overwritten by a Puppet Run in the Installation Guide.

To view all installer flags available for custom configuration, run satellite-installer --scenario satellite --full-help. Some Puppet classes are not exposed to the Satellite installer. To manage them manually and prevent the installer from overwriting their values, specify the configuration values by adding entries to configuration file /etc/foreman-installer/custom-hiera.yaml. This configuration file is in YAML format, consisting of one entry per line in the format of <puppet class>::<parameter name>: <value>. Configuration values specified in this file persist across installer reruns.

Common examples include:

For Apache, to set the ServerTokens directive to only return the Product name:

apache::server_tokens: Prod

To turn off the Apache server signature entirely:

apache::server_signature: Off

For Pulp, to configure the number of pulp workers:

pulp::num_workers: 8

The Puppet modules for the Satellite installer are stored under /usr/share/foreman-installer/modules and /usr/share/katello-installer-base/modules. Check the .pp files (for example: moduleName/manifests/example.pp) to look up the classes, parameters, and values. Alternatively, use the grep command to do keyword searches.

Setting some values may have unintended consequences that affect the performance or functionality of Red Hat Satellite. Consider the impact of the changes before you apply them, and test the changes in a non-production environment first. If you do not have a non-production Satellite environment, run the Satellite installer with the --noop and --verbose options. If your changes cause problems, remove the offending lines from custom-hiera.yaml and rerun the Satellite installer. If you have any specific questions about whether a particular value is safe to alter, contact Red Hat support.

C.1. How to Restore Manual Changes Overwritten by a Puppet Run

If your manual configuration has been overwritten by a Puppet run, you can restore the files to the previous state. The following example shows you how to restore a DHCP configuration file overwritten by a Puppet run.

Copy the file you intend to restore. This allows you to compare the files to check for any mandatory changes required by the upgrade. This is not common for DNS or DHCP services.

# cp /etc/dhcp/dhcpd.conf /etc/dhcp/dhcpd.backup

Check the log files to note down the md5sum of the overwritten file. For example:

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